6.06pm: OK, we're about to close the blog and sneak off for the last of the soggy sandwiches. Just before we do, here is a quick recap on today:

• The Queen's diamond jubilee river pageant completed a tour of the River Thames with a 1,000-strong flotilla passing under Tower Bridge. A 41-gun salute was fired from the Tower of London to celebrate the Queen's 60 years on the throne while the bascules of Tower Bridge opened for the arrival of the royal barge. The jubilee festivities continue tomorrow when Buckingham Palace becomes the centre of attention with the BBC jubilee concert getting underway at 19.30pm.

• Thousands of people cheered on the flotilla from the bridges and embankments of the River Thames despite almost continual wet weather. Organisers of what was billed as the largest anti-monarchy protest of modern times meanwhile say that more than 1,000 people joined their event.

• An estimated 6 million people took part in tens of thousands of Big Lunches across the UK, according to organisers. The largest took place in Greenwich, south-east London, with up to 10,000 people sitting down to eat. Lunches were also held across the UK and overseas, such as Islamabad in Pakistan, Delhi in India, Durban in South Africa and even on the Polynesian island nation of Tuvalu.

6.04pm: Following a sea shanty and a rendition of Rule Britannia, the orchestra brings today's pageant to a close with God Save the Queen.

5.57pm: To the strains of Land and Hope and Glory, the flotilla has finally reached the finishing line at Tower Bridge.

The weather has failed to dampen much of the enthusiasm among those involved in today's pageant, but it has caused the cancellation of a fly past by RAF helicopters in a "diamond" formation.

The other element of today's finale has come together though, with Land and Hope and Glory booming out from Symphony, a vessel carrying the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

5.54pm: Jubilee lunches held to celebrate the Queen's 60-year reign brought 6 million people together today, organisers have said.

There were tens of thousands of gatherings, reports the Press Association, with some receiving surprise visits from royals such as the Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke of York and princesses Beatrice and Eugenie.

The biggest lunch took place in Greenwich, south-east London, with up to 10,000 people sitting down to eat.

Meals were also held to celebrate the jubilee in 70 countries across the globe, in places as far flung as China, Algeria and the Arctic.

5.22pm: Guinness World Records has announced that the pageant achieved a new world record for the largest parade of boats – surpassing the previous record of 327 boats in Bremerhaven, Germany, last year.

The record was announced as 419 boats reached Tower Bridge, with up to 1,000 vessels expected to complete the pageant.

4.52pm: Twenty-first century rain doesn't obey the monarchy any more than the tide did when Canute was king in 1028AD, writes Martin Wainwright, who has been soaking up the atmosphere in the north.

In a piece shortly going live elsewhere on the site, he adds:

The result in large parts of the north was a wholesale retreat indoors for hundreds of communal events which had hope to take advantage of the sort of warmth and sunshine which illuminated late May.

"It's a washout," said a woman regular at the former Red Lion in Otley, where all 17 of the small town's pubs have renamed themselves The Queen Elizabeth until Wednesday. Outside in the downpour, knots of children with Union Jacks scampered around a soaked stage set up for a family party in the Market Square.

But the outdoors' lonely scene of dank bunting and paint running from homemade garden party posters was deceptive – typically in the village of Bramhope on top of the Chevin hillside between Bramhope and Leeds.

Following the traditional ploy of 'In vicarage/church hall if wet', more than 150 villagers filled every place at trestle tables presided over by the vicar of St Giles' parish church, Rev Janice Smith, and her Methodist counterpart, Rev Dawn Saunders.

4.47pm: Thanks in the meantime for your comments and photos (like the one below) that we have received.

The photo was sent in by Garry McIlwaine, principal at Ampertaine primary school, a small rural school with 118 pupils in County Derry, where the jubilee was celebrated with a street party in the school yard on Friday.

4.38pm: A Sainsbury's spokesperson has come back with a response to complaints from members of the public about Jubilee Family Festival in Hyde Park:

We are very sorry to hear that a small number of people did not enjoy their day out with us yesterday. Overall we've had great, positive feedback about the vast array of entertainment on offer to celebrate the jubilee. There will inevitably be some queues at an event of this size with 50,000 people but we've worked hard with the organisers overnight to avoid any similar issues today."

4.33pm: Over at Downing Street, the twitter account operated by David Cameron's office has tweeted a picture of the prime minister on hand as ice cream is dished out:

4.30pm: Tower Bridge has opened up its bascule pivots to allow the Spirit of Chartwell to pass through.

The royal barge has now also performed a turn and will remain in place to allow the rest of the flotilla to pass through.

The royal pageant heading towards Tower Bridge. Photograph: Tom Bage

Salutes have been sounding out from the horns of smaller boats nearby. Another hour and a half of other vessels passing remain.

4.11pm:Imogen Fox, the Guardian's deputy fashion editor, has been giving her verdict on the pagaent's fashions. Here's a snippet of a piece going up in full online shortly:

As it turned out, the Spirit of Chartwell chic followed the same predictable Union flag colour scheme as any other jubilee party.

The Duchess of Cambridge was the first to show her hand in the flotilla fashion stakes. She wore a crimson Alexander McQueen long-sleeved dress by Sarah Burton – the designer responsible for her wedding dress.

A red hat designed by Sylvia Fletcher for James Lock and a pair of her by-now trademark biege-pink heels completed the look along with a silver dolphin brooch that was a gift from Prince William.

She wasn't the first to wear this demi-peplum dress with pleated skirt: versions of the dress have already been worn on by X factor judge Tulisa Contostavlos and US reality TV star Kim Kardashian to other distinctly unroyal occasions.

Nor was she alone in her choice of colour - the Chelsea pensioners, the Royal Watermen and the Spirit of Chartwell itself were in on the pillar-box red trend.

4.06pm: Amid the fanfare, it might seem like a difficult day for British republicans, but organisors of what was billed as the largest anti-monarchy protest of modern times say more than 1,000 people have joined them today.

Protesters from across the country began arriving at noon and have continued to stream into the two protest sites, according to the campaign group Republic.

Anti-monarchy protesters gather on the banks of the river Thames at city hall, London. Photograph: Peter Macdiarmid/PA

Those taking part held anti-monarchy placards and chanting "Monarchy out" while speakers including Joan Smith and Peter Tatchell have been addressing the crowd throughout the afternoon.

The royal barge was expected to pass the protest site shortly after 4pm while the protest will end at approximately 5.30pm.

Graham Smith, chief executive of Republic, said the protest was held at the same time as the river pageant to "raise the profile" of the republican movement.

He said: "We're opposed to celebrating hereditary privilege and power. The message is to the millions of people who oppose the monarchy that there is a movement you can support.

"The whole country isn't in love with the monarchy. It's a minority interest. We'll keep going until the monarchy is abolished."

Republic said the protest involved representatives of the group's branches in Wales and Scotland, as well as a delegation from the Swedish republican movement.

Other protestors from PETA, campaigning against foie gras, meanwhile carried out a demonstration today against Fortnum & Mason at the store's street party celebration.

3.52pm: Despite festivities being somewhat muted in Belfast, the contrast between today's commemoration and previous jubilee celebrations say how much things have changed in the once Troubles-ravaged Northern Ireland, writes the Guardian's Ireland correspondent Henry McDonald.

In July 1977 the Provisional IRA threatened to disrupt the planned visit by the Queen to Northern Ireland as part of her tour around the UK during her silver jubilee year.

The warning followed violent skirmishes between republicans and the security forces a month earlier when anti-monarchy demonstrators tried to march into central Belfast to protest against the silver jubilee.

Today Sinn Féin has voted in favour at the Northern Ireland Assembly for the power sharing executive to buy a gift of Beleek pottery to mark the Queen's 60 years on the throne. Meanwhile the Sinn Féin deputy first minister, Martin McGuinness, is considering whether to do the royal handshake with the Queen when she again visits Northern Ireland later this month.

There are still, of course security, concerns in preparation for the royal visit to Belfast and Enniskillen at the end of June. There remains an ongoing dissident republican threat but the first minister, Peter Robinson, said today that the Police Service of Northern Ireland are comfortable with the trip.

"The PSNI have to be satisfied that they can deal with all of the issues around crowd control and the potential for people to try and make some kind of disruptive objective during the course of the visit," Robinson told Radio Ulster's Inside Politics show.

3.46pm: In Wales, revellers have been braving the rain, with more than 300 official street parties taking place, reports the Press Association:

City centre big screens relayed images of the Thames diamond jubilee pageant for thousands to witness.

Despite sometimes teeming rain, hardy partygoers were determined to see out the celebration to its end.

In Cardiff scores of people were on the scene early at the start of the city's Big Lunch celebration, in St Mary's Street.

Ceri Jones, 31, from Neath, got in the party atmosphere by offering sausages rolls to more than a dozen friends at the Big Lunch.

"It's a shame about the rain but it won't change our plans at all. We intend to make this an occasion we won't forget," she said.

3.43pm: Who's winning the battle of the airwaves? The BBC, which has opted for a format that mixes traditional commentary with some segments from studio presenters, seems to be coming in for stick from commentators such as the Daily Telegraph's Benedict Brogan:

Is #BBC planning to cover the pageant at all? They keep cutting away for pointless interviews #welldoneSky

3.39pm: Here's the view from Blackfriars bridge:

Photograph: Chris Furlong/DP/Getty Images

Thousands of people have been waiting along the embankment for the royal pageant since early this morning.

3.35pm: An update from Sam Jones, who says:

A cheer, the honking of a hunting horn and a chorus of God Save the Queen greeted the royal barge as it passed beneath Chelsea bridge a little after 3.15.

Some of the more classically inclined bridge folk even began to bellow: 'Vivat Regina!' Not far behind on another barge was a man who would surely have appreciated the deployment of Latin: Boris Johnson. The mayor of London got nearly as big a cheer as her majesty, suggesting Prince Charles might want to join David Cameron in looking over his shoulder."

3.31pm: Those two mini thrones on board the royal barge, the Spirit of Chartwell, don't seem to be getting much use from the Queen or Prince Philip.

She's been taking a look below decks though, where the vessel has been made to resemble the interior of a carriage from the Orient Express. Some 60 guests are down below also, tucking into drinks and canapes… some Duchey Originals perhaps also?

3.14pm: Perhaps we should spare a thought for the broadcasters charged with maintaining a running commentary.

Channel 4's Krishnan Guru-Murthy ‏seems to be thankful that he isn't charged with such a role today:

I am so glad I am not doing the TV commentary on this river pageant. Some truly hilarious nonsense on the airwaves #jobfromhell

Back on the Thames, the crowds have been whooping and cheering as the million-pound row barge Gloriana came through Battersea bridge, led by Olympic gold medallists Sir Matthew Pinsent and Sir Steve Redgrave, rowing with 16 others.

The Australian rowers in distinctive yellow Australia Unlimited boats also drew huge cheers as they waved to revellers.

Nice cop on Chelsea bridge is making sure the adults here move aside to let kids though to get the best view #jubilee

3.01pm: John Vidal has more on the spectacle unfolding in front of him on the Thames:

The first bells ring out, the hooters sound and a splendid array of many hundreds of small row boats comes around the river bend led by the Queen's new gold-plated ensign barge, small scullers in scarlets eights and fours all in yellows, whites and and greens.

'Never ever could I have imagined such a sight on the Thames,' says one of the older onlookers beside me, Jim Thomas. He is nearly in tears at the theatre of the occasion."

2.55pm: Martin Wainwright has sent this video from Bramhope, West Yorkshire:

Thousands of community events such as this one are happening all over the country.

2.53pm: It's not just a waterborne event. A London Midland and Scottish Railway Coronation Class steam locomotive named the Princess Elizabeth has been passing over Battersea rail bridge.

A series of small vessels representing Commonwealth countries are now making their way past the Queen, standing alongside her husband.

As word spread of the start of the pageant, crowds on Tower Bridge and the nearby river banks cheered and sounded klaxons.

2.50pm: Public celebrations of the jubilee have meanwhile been more muted in Scotland, reports the Guardian's Scotland correspondent, Severin Carrell:

Councils have reported about 100 official street closures to allow street parties over the weekend, with about a third staged in the capital, Edinburgh. Anarchists in the anti-cuts protest movement claimed to have raised a black and red anarchist flag in protest on the Bank of Scotland's headquarters in central Edinburgh, within sight of Edinburgh castle where a 21-gun salute was fired on Saturday.

Visitors to the Royal Yacht Britannia, which was decommissioned in 1997 and is now permanently moored as a tourist attraction in Leith, are being offered a tot of rum to toast the Queen and jubilee cake this weekend. A carefully restored royal barge, the smaller boat used originally to take the Queen and the royal family to and from Britannia, was taken to London by road last week to take part in the Thames flotilla.

In Glasgow, the Protestant monarchist Orange order staged 20 parades though the city on Sunday, culminating in two street parties to commemorate the day."

2.40pm: Royal Navy sailers have performed a boat hook linking the launch with the barge, which is decked out in a veritable floral extravaganza.

The Queen is the first to step on to the barge, followed by the Duke of Edinburgh, the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall.

The Queen boards to royal barge. Photograph: BBC

From here, they'll watch the start of the man-powered diamond jubilee pageant, rowing at four knots down the river.

2.38pm: Bells from churches along the route are now also beginning to ring out as the royal launch makes it way by. The rain seems to have let up too.

The rowers of man-powered boats that have been waiting in the water are also beginning to flex in anticipation as the Royal launch makes its way down river from Chelsea Pier to Cadogan Pier.

Waiting at the royal barge is the Duke and Duchess of Cambrige.

2.20pm: The Queen and other royals are now being ferried to the royal barge, which is waiting for her at Cadogan Pier.

She's giving that familiar stiff-wristed wave. In case you were wondering, the outfit she's wearing has been a year in the planning and was designed by Angela Kelly and made by her small in-house Buckingham Palace team.

Its colour scheme was chosen to stand out against the red, gold and purple hues of the royal barge.

2.14pm: And here she is, clad in white and stepping out of her car now in preparation for boarding the royal barge.

The crowd are cheering her on as she makes her way down the red carpet.

Chelsea pensioners meeting the Queen were led by Simon Bate, the adjutant of the Royal Hospital. The former Royal Artillery officer is one of 22 pensioners providing a guard of honour for the monarch.

He said it was a tremendous honour to be involved. The 55-year-old said the day's events were quite different to when he celebrated the silver jubilee in 1977 as a second lieutenant in the British army of the Rhine.

2.06pm: A sign now that things are cranking up. The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall have just arrived on the river bank in full regalia.

He's having a chat to a line of red-coated Chelsea pensioners, alongside the Lord Lieutenant, who will greet the Queen when she arrives shortly

Prince William and his brother, Harry, along with the Duchess of Cambridge are next to arrive.

Some sartorial background: Prince Charles was wearing his Royal Navy admiral's ceremonial day dress uniform, while the duchess was wearing an Anna Valentine coat and dress and a hat by Philip Treacy.

1.55pm: We're still waiting for the Queen to make an appearance. Something tells me though that it's not her who has been sending tweets like this:

Text from Mr Cameron: "Is this weather what long to reign over us means?!". Sod off.

1.55pm: With everything from dragonboats to one-man kayaks, the Thames waterway will shortly be turning into a medley of all things maritime.

Here is a bit more on some of the 1,000 historic vessels, steam boats, barges and tugs (courtesy of the Press Association):

• Belfry Barge The pageant's lead vessel is a floating belfry with a new set of eight church bells cast at the Whitechapel Bell Foundry especially for the diamond jubilee celebrations.

The bells are named after senior members of the royal family - Elizabeth, Philip, Charles, Anne, Andrew, Edward, William and Henry - and will be answered and echoed by ringing from the riverbank churches along the route.

• Gloriana The £1m Gloriana will lead the manpower squadron of the pageant, ahead of the Queen's barge. It will be powered by 18 oarsmen including Olympians Sir Steve Redgrave and Sir Matthew Pinsent.

Corporal Neil Heritage, who lost his legs while serving in Iraq, and three other military service personnel who suffered life changing injuries, will be among the elite team.

Four of the rowers on the 94ft gold leaf barge are members of the Paralympic rowing squad including Pamela Relph.

• Spirit of Chartwell Carrying the Queen and other key royals including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the Spirit of Chartwell, the Royal Barge is lavishly decorated with replica carvings.

With a majestic red, gold and purple colour scheme, the vessel's design will echo the richly decorated royal barges of the 17th and 18th centuries.It displays a gilded prow sculpture of Old Father Thames, a pair of scaly, sharp-toothed classical dolphins - a symbol of the Thames - and the royal cipher at the centre.

• Elizabethan This paddle steamer will be ferrying the Duchess of Cambridge's family - her parents Michael and Carole and siblings Pippa and James.

The Elizabethan is described as having "the unique exterior of a 19th century paddle steamer coupled with the interior of a top London restaurant and night club".

1.44pm: On the Thames, boats are getting ready for the start of the pageant.

Photograph: Pool/Reuters

Crew members of a replica birch bark canoe from Canada's Peterborough Museum (below) paddle to the start position.

Photograph: Pool/Reuters

Crowds gather on the banks of the river Thames.

Photograph: Dan Kitwood/PA

The start of the pageant should be under way soon.

1.42pm: Another update from John Vidal on Albert bridge:

Shivering with hundreds of others. the north bank is 10 deep now with crowds but the giant new block of flats on the south side is full of parties.

Right below me on a barge moored in the river, a small party has quaffed three bottles of bolinger alreadty.

One man beside me admits to be a republican. "Shhhh...", he says, conspiratorially. "I had to lie to the neighbours where I was going, but I'm hoping to get to the demo later."

1.35pm: Some comments now from folks waiting for the flotilla on the Thames to pass by.

Among them is Lesley Goodacre, 57, from Donnington, Lincolnshire, wearing a Diamond jubilee-themed outfit. She was helped by her 82-year-old mother Dot to create a union flag-design dress and pair of shoes, straw hat and red pashmina.

Lesley told reporters from the Press Association: "I always go over the top. I couldn't get enough red, white and blue on me.

"We came to celebrate the Queen's silver and golden jubilee. She has done a magnificent job and shown great composure throughout her reign."Ian Gilbert, skipper of Papillon, one of the Dunkirk little ships taking part in the pageant, was meawnhile upbeat despite the drizzle and cold.

"Nothing gets us down," he said "Regrettably we're used to this kind of weather. It's what doing anything outdoors in the UK is all about."I just feel sorry for the people who have come to watch."

1.30pm: Here's the scene at Battersea park, south-west London, where revellers are queuing to enter a jubilee party.

Photograph: Chris Jackson/Getty Images

We're just 30 minutes away from the Queen boarding the royal barge.

1.24pm: Uh oh. Something of a backlash has been sparked by yesterday's Jubilee Family Festival in Hyde Park, if comments about Sainsbury's on the Time Out site are anything to go by.

The event, sponsored by the supermarket giant, was billed as a family festival for the Queen's diamond jubilee, featuring live music and entertainment.

But just get a load of comments such as this one from the Time Out site:

Got there but the queue was 1 hr and 45 minutes. However I felt that I needed to spend some money so I bought a book of adverts for £5.

Yesterday's 'experience' was a soulless, corporate-self-interested waste of time. Sainsbury's should make a formal apology to all those who came. It should also be ashamed that it was all done in the name of the Queen as it was an embarrassment to her name. Save your money and time and go to Tesco's for a day out."

Another says:

Thank goodness for internet, I thought I was alone in my thinking about how badly the JUBILEE event was organized AT HYDE PARK utter utter waste of my £52 family ticket PLUS 8 HOURS OF CHAOS for me and my family queue after queue we ended up floating about. do not bother going."

1.16pm: Here's a video of an interview with a member of the public taking part in the celebrations.

Christine Vickers, 49, from Hampshire, explains why she came to London with her two children for the jubilee flotilla.

1.10pm: The heir to the throne has been exercising his vocal cords meanwhile:

impressed Charles and Camilla know words to 2nd verse of national anthem, as just sung at #jubilee street party

1.09pm: As today's pageant gets under way, here's a jolly snippet from the Guardian's John Vidal (who is currently on Albert bridge 10 feet above the royal barge) on the mastermind behind the spectacle:

Adrian Evans, the Queen's pageant master, who came up with the idea and devised the spectacle of a flotilla of 1,000 ships to accompany the Queen down the Thames, has his roots in anarchic French circus, avant-garde theatre groups, pyrotechynic extravaganzas and high-wire walks across the Thames.

As the worldwide promoter of French circus group Archaos in the late 1980s, Evans shocked audiences from London to Australia with Mad Max-style performers who rode motorbikes instead of horses, clowns who juggled chainsaws and naked trapeze artists. Archaos shows included fork lift trucks and Semtex explosions.

Most royal appointments are made from within a tight circle of courtiers and the armed services, but Evans was brought in, it is thought, to give theatrical life to traditionally staid royal pageants. It has taken more than one year to organise.

His unlikely rise from living in a showman's caravan on an industrial site in north London to officially greeting the Queen and Royal family before an audience of 100 million TV viewers for the the biggest event on the Thames in over 350 years, includes spells with radical theatre troupe Luniere and Son, and his day job , as producer of the Thames festival.

Evans, who is married to TV presenter and classical history specialist Bettany Hughes, last mnight said: 'This is tthe biggest thing I have ever done,' he said last night."

1.04pm:Caroline Davies reports now from outside city hall, where she said around 250 anti-monarchist protesters have gathered for a demonstration that officially started at midday:

They've come from all over the country. Waving placards reading 'Don't jubilee've it' and 'Republic Now', they listened as Republic campaign group chief executive Graham Smith said 'Be very proud of yourselves'.

It was the 'biggest republican gathering at a royal event,' he said.'We will win this campaign,' he added, as a woman bedecked in red, white and blue walking past retorted 'no you bloody won't'.

Smith told the Guardian that the police had been 'very helpful'. Numbers are expected to grow much larger at the protest, which is by the Scoop amphitheatre near city hall. Human rights activist Peter Tatchell and newspaper columnist Joan Smith are addressing the protest later It is expected to be at its largest around 4pm as the royal barge passes by."

1.03pm: The No 10 Big Lunch is being moved doors it seems. Something of a metaphor perhaps for how the rain has recently been raining somewhat on David Cameron's political fortunes?

Still, Downing Street is taking today's festivities fairly seriously. From a Storify which has just gone up you can check out a special ice cream treat set up for guest arriving at No 10.

12.36pm:Sam Jones has a flavour of what he has come across along the Thames:

Several Hello! magazine-branded union flags are fluttering in the drizzly breeze on Chelsea bridge, which is already half-covered in collapsible picnic chairs.

Tea, rather than anything stronger, is the beverage of choice - not a huge surprise given the grotty weather.

Below us, the Thames flows by, brown-grey as ever. The mood here couldnot exactly be described as festive, yet many of those swaddled in plastic raincoats have the look of people determined to have a good time, rather than effortlessly having one.

But it's still early in the day and, anyway, what could be more British than drinking tea, queuing and moaning about the climate"

The Union Jacks with Hello and Ok mags advertising are naff in the extreme

12.20pm: Stephen Bates has an update from the Thames, where he is on board Broad Ambition:

Rain now stopped but it is cold and blustery on the river. Waiting for scrutineers to give final all-clear for Broad Ambition to take part (they're visiting every boat to make sure they're still river-worthy and they even have breathalysers to check the skippers and navigators if they smell alcohol on their breath...)

We're due to cast off at 2.37pm.

Slightly scary instruction for landlubbers like me: if you fall overboard the boat won't stop - that would cause chaos in the flotilla – you'll have to wait to be picked up by a boat coming up behind.

A live webcam from Broad Amition is now also live so you can follow our progress downstream."

12.14pm: The jubilee has thrown the spotlight on some fairly extraordinary individuals, ranging from paralympians and cancer survivors to a 95-year-old Dunkirk veteran who is believed to be the oldest participant in today's flotilla.

Vic Viner, from Dorking, Surrey, is thought to be the sole survivor of the Royal Navy's 156-strong rescue operation at Dunkirk and appropriately, he will be aboard the Jacantha, one of the Dunkirk "little ships".

Memories of those terrible days remain undimmed for Viner, who gives talks to schools and clubs about his wartime experiences. He told the Guardian earlier this week that being invited to take part in the pageant "was a very great honour."

12.11pm: Peter Walker has come up with what might be a fitting analogy:

Lots of people sat on folding chairs wearing waterproofs eating their lunch early. Like Wimbledon without the tennis #jubilee

12.06pm: If anyone looks to be in their element today, it's London's mayor, Boris Johnson, who has been popping up on broadcast coverage over the past hour fairly regularly.

He's going to be joining some second-string royals, including the Duke of York, later on board the Havengore, which was used to transport Sir Winston Churchill's body along the Thames on the day of his state funeral in 1965. Would a Ken Livingstone mayoralty have been quite as enthusiastic?

11.58am: The Guardian's Peter Walker has been chatting to revellers while on his way to Blackfriars bridge on the Thames:

I asked one all-age group of 12 from the Isle of Wight ('We're still part of the kingdom') about their reasons for coming. These seemed more about wanting to join in a unifying, national event than specific love or loyalty for the Queen.

'It's a way we mark the passage of time, these events, and how things change,' said Paul McLaren, like most of his party wearing a cardboard union flag bowler hat. 'Think back to the footage from 1952 - that's one of the ways we remember what things were like then. Of course, it's more modest this time as we've spent so much on the Olympics.'

The consensus was that while feelings towards the Queen and Prince Charles are warm but a bit tepid, there is much more connection felt with the next generation down.

'William and Harry really feel like they're one of us,' said Sharon George. 'Of course, they're not, but they're better at pretending.'"

11.51am: Another view on festivities elsewhere in the UK has been filed by Martin Wainwright, the Guardian's northern editor:

Steady rain in Yorkshire initially had the appearance of being set in for the day, with dull grey clouds low over the Pennines and sea frets or fogs along part of the coast. But things have been lightening up, and there's some hope that the Met Office forecast will prove pessimistic.

More than 260 street parties are planned in Yorkshire and Humberside including four which are closing main roads in North Yorkshire for a fee of £300 a time. Parties in side roads are free. Last night, tents, gazebos and 'sun' umbrellas mushroomed in Leeds and Bradford suburbs; evidence that stoicism rather than cancellation is the order of the day.

One of the best of the jubilee events in the region has already taken place, prudently opting for last week's warmer and sunnier weather.

A huge procession, overflowing with schoolchildren and applauded by local residents, wound through the Girlington area of Bradford, home of many British Asian families. At its head, waving from a car in monarchical style, were Karam and Katari Chand, aged 106 and 99, who have been married for 87 years and are the world's oldest married couple.

Bunting is everywhere in spite of the downpours and one of the main regional suppliers, Flying colours of Knaresborough, has taken on extra staff and run constant overtime to meet a fourfold rise in demand. The Bradford-based supermarket Morrison's has evidence that the cucumber sandwich, as royal a symbol as the corgi, is vying with the cupcake on party menus. In the last week, over 30,000 cucumbers were sold."

11.45am: A little bit now on jubilee celebrations in Northern Ireland, where events coincide with the first day in office for Belfast's new 27-year-old lord mayor, and with the progress there of the Olympic torch relay.

The Guardian's Ireland correspondent, Henry McDonald, reports that Gavin Robinson's first day as Belfast's first citizen will be dominated by diamond jubilee parties across the city.

The Democratic Unionist party councillor's first official engagement will be to attend a street party at Orangefield Park in east Belfast at 1pm. He will also host an afternoon tea party at Belfast city hall which will include couples celebrating their 60th wedding anniversaries this year.

11.38am: My colleague Shiv Malik has spotted another interesting jubilee-related contribution also coming out of Bristol:

The radical community group the People's Republic of Stokes Croft, famed in Bristol for their regenerative street artworks, have chipped in with their own take on the jubilee.

At their base in Stokes Croft they have a kiln where they keep a tradition of local pottery making alive. From those fires they have produced a set of fine china, mugs, plates and teapots "commemorating" the Queen's reign.

Stokes Croft anti-jubilee China Photograph: Stokes Croft China

A protest cuppa? What could be more British?

11.28am: Of course, we're not even half way through the jubilee, which started yesterday. Here's a picture gallery giving a flavour of some of Saturday's scenes.

Photograph: Henry Tullip

It includes (above) what is thought to be a new piece by the street artist Banksy, which has appeared in Bristol.

11.19am:Caroline Davies, another Guardian journalist who has chronicled the royal family over the years, is also out and about today. She tweets:

11.14am: In weather terms, it seems the day may not be a washout after all. Jubilee revellers along the Thames have been offered a glimmer of hope that conditions may brighten this afternoon.

Matt Dobson, a forecaster at MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association, says:

London will see a lot of cloud today and rain showers throughout the day, although there should be a few bright spells. During the Thames pageant there could be heavy showers over London with some dry interludes. Temperatures may get up to maximums of 15C but that is still quite cool for this time of year.

People should definitely take a brolly and a mac if they are going to be out and about celebrating the Jubilee."

And those attending street parties up and down the country are also expected to have a challenging day with temperatures below what is usual for this time of year.

Street parties in the rest of the country are facing similar conditions, with southern England set to see quite heavy showers and few sunny spells.

Temperatures across Wales, the Midlands, East Anglia and the north of England will see a maximum of between 8C and 12C, with rain in places.

In Northern Ireland, Scotland and the far north of England the day will be cool, bright and breezy with sunshine interrupted by scattered showers.

11.04am: Here's a piece to give you a bit of a quick broad overview of what lies ahead today.

More than 20,000 people will be on the boats, which are expected to be watched by at least 1 million people lining the river's banks and bridges as central London comes to a virtual standstill.

Up to 50 large screens have been placed along the river for people to view the flotilla, which sets off from Putney at 2.30pm and finishes at Tower Bridge at 5.30pm when the last of the vessels arrive.

10.59am: A team of Guardian reporters are out and about today, and will be filing reports from vantage points along the Thames and outside of London.Stephen Bates, a veteran reporter on all matters royal for the Guardian, might have the best position of all. He's on board Broad Ambition, a lovingly restored Norfolk Broads cruiser, which will be in the historic boats section of the Thames flotilla. His first call from the river came through earlier:

We're currently moored above Putney: came aboard before 8am though we won't be underway until 2pm. In our part of the river we're surrounded by little boats, old Royal Navy craft, cruisers, river boats, even gondolas.

Broad Ambition was rescued in a derelict state by some retired Navy men who spent five years (and £80,000) lovingly restoring it.

They're all aboard. We're all going to dress in 1960s gear in keeping with the boat and spirit of the occasion: white polonecks and beige slacks, like superannuated Monkees. Or, in my case, a fat mushroom…"

10.48am: Good morning and welcome to the Guardian's live blog coverage of the Queen's diamond jubilee, including today's centrepiece event, a flotilla of 1,000 boats that will make its way down the river Thames, led by the Queen's barge.

We're also going to report on events around the UK, particularly the thousands of street parties taking place alongside The Big Lunch, a charity initiative designed to get communities to spend time together.

As forecast, the heavens have opened and it's a pretty damp day out there so far, not that rain seems to have deterred many of the Queen's admirers who are are already beginning to line the banks of the Thames before the nautical parade.

Of course, not everyone is quite so enthusiastic about today. Republic, the anti-monarchy group, has promised the "biggest anti-monarchy protest in living memory" at the river pageant.

So whether you're clad in all-weather gear and sat in a deckchair by the Thames, laying out Queen cakes under a tarpaulin at a street party, unfurling a republican banner or simply keeping abreast of the biggest news event of the weekend, feel free to contribute comments below and keep abreast of developments as they unfold.